Dec 85 min read

Film REVIEW: Paddington in Peru (2024) - ★★★★★

Follow the marmalade footprints for the year’s hairiest threequel, as Paddington turns action hero in this Indiana Jones-style adventure.

From the A-list cast featuring Ben Whishaw, Hugh Bonneville (Tomorrow Never Dies), Olivia Colman (Murder on the Orient Express, The Father) and Antonio Banderas (Shrek series), to the plot, age rating and rip-roaring trailer, here’s your ultimate guide to Paddington 3.

Director: Dougal Wilson

Writer: Mark Burton, Jon Foster, James Lamont, Paul King, Simon Farnaby

based on Paddington Bea by Michael Bond

Stars: Hugh Bonneville, Emily Mortimer, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Carla Tous, Olivia Colman, Antonio Banderas, Ben Wishaw.

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Family

Themes: Paddington Bear, Sequel, Live Action CGI Hybrid

Paddington returns to Peru to visit his beloved Aunt Lucy, who now resides at the Home for Retired Bears. With the Brown family in tow, a thrilling adventure ensues when a mystery plunges them into an unexpected journey.

It is the third installment in the Paddington film series, which are based on the Paddington stories by Michael Bond, and a sequel to Paddington (2014) and Paddington 2 (2017).

The film received positive reviews from critics.

In Cinemas Now

MIX UP REVIEWS:

Amelia-Rose (Age 9) - ★★★★★

"Paddington In Peru is a really fun film to watch. It was my favourite of the paddington films!

There was lots of funny moments including Paddington getting on the hammock and repeatedly fell off.

I loved the scene were Paddington found Auntie Lucy and it made me feel really happy.

I would love to watch it again as it was so funny!

I really enjoyed it ☺️

5 🌟"

Have you seen it yet?

Is Paddington Bear 3 coming out? Buzz & backstory

In a world where nobody agrees on anything, the Paddington film series could make Jedis and Siths share a popcorn bucket. From the half-billion box office to the BAFTA nominations – not to mention a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes – these sweet, witty, oh-so-English movies couldn’t be more universally adored. But it’s been seven long years since Paddington 2, and we seriously need another shot of marmalade.

Now, at last, the bear is back. Paddington In Peru has arrived and having so far terrorised leafy middle-class London, director Dougal Wilson’s third caper pings our ursine hero back to his home turf in the forests of Darkest Peru.

“It’s a massive responsibility,” says the British filmmaker (who is used to jerking our tears as the director of several John Lewis Christmas ads). “But all my efforts will be focused on making a third film that honours the love people have for this very special bear.”

Paddington 3 plot - What is the story of Paddington 3?

In both Paddington movies so far, we’ve seen snatches of the cub’s early life in Peru before he crashed with the Brown family at 32 Windsor Gardens. Now, strap in for a fresh squeeze of comedy juice, as Paddington 3 jets the bear and his adoptive family to South America for a reunion with beloved Aunt Lucy.

Arriving at the Home For Retired Bears, Paddington is crushed to find Aunt Lucy has trekked into the jungle on a mysterious quest. And that’s when the movie turns all ‘vintage-Indiana-Jones’ on us, as the gang mount a rescue mission featuring booby-trapped temples, rolling boulders and nosediving biplanes.

Producer Rosie Alison told audiences at a trailer preview there was only one man who could pull off this action-packed threequel. “Dougal Wilson just has the ideal qualities for a Paddington film. He has this abundant visual imagination and endless flair, but a very rigorous individual imagination as well. He also has wonderful comic timing and humour and wit, but he also has this wonderful big heart as well, and this generosity and this emotion.”

Cast of Paddington 3 - Who stars in the new Paddington movie?

Upbeat, unfailingly polite and endearingly naïve, Ben Whishaw’s voice work has been key to the Paddington series from the start. The Bond star is back for this third movie and brings heart to every mishap. Just don’t tell your kids their BFF bear is voiced by a 43-year-old from Bedfordshire. “It's very disappointing,” Whishaw once told the BBC. “Occasionally a parent will point me out to a child and I can see the bafflement on their faces, because how can I possibly be Paddington?”

The Brown family, too, are (almost) all present and correct, with Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville returning as the exasperated patriarch Henry, flanked by Harry Potter’s Julie Walters as housekeeper Mrs Bird, plus Madeleine Harris and Samuel Joslin (The Impossible) as Judy and Jonathan.

Why is Sally Hawkins not in Paddington 3? After a decade playing artsy dreamer Mrs Brown (without whom Paddington would have slept on the streets), the star says it’s “the right time to hand over the reins to another”. Step up Emily Mortimer (Shutter Island, Howl's Moving Castle), whose comedy skills light up the Paddington 3 trailer. “She is extraordinarily special,” says Hawkins. “She will embody the essence of Mary Brown and yet make it utterly her own."

Paddington 3 villain - Who is the baddie in the new Paddington movie?

The bear gets top billing, but the original Paddington movies were celebrated for their brilliant villains. First, we had Nicole Kidman’s scalpel-wielding taxidermist with daddy issues, Millicent Clyde. Next, we had Hugh Grant’s bitter skin-shedding thesp, Phoenix Buchanan.

Now? It’s not confirmed who’ll be the baddie in Paddington 3, but based on the trailer, we’d bet on two frontrunners. There’s Oscar-winner Olivia Colman as the Reverend Mother: a guitar-playing nun whose alligator smile could hide a few secrets. Then there’s Antonio Banderas as smooth-talking boat captain Hunter Cabot. Is his conscience as clean as that snow-white linen suit?

Screen Rant’s Tommy Lethbridge warns us not to trust Colman’s character. “Paddington 2 turned nuns into a franchise villain. Phoenix Buchanan disguised himself as a nun to break into St. Paul’s Cathedral. The fact that another nun is featuring in the franchise could be a covert reference to this seven-year-old gag – potentially tying two villains together in a surprising way.”

Paddington 3 age rating - Who can watch Paddington in Peru?

Paddington is one celluloid grizzly you can trust to keep it clean. As such, Paddington 3 will be one that the whole family can enjoy without the worry that there will be mauling or powdered muzzles.

Paddington 3 trivia - What's a fun fact about Paddington in Peru?

We’ve seen some quirky movie marketing campaigns over the years, from the real-life Barbie Dreamhouse that sprang up in Malibu to Deadpool’s fake Tinder profile. But the oddest tie-in of 2024 has to be perfumier Jo Malone toasting the release of Paddington 3 with a limited-edition marmalade cologne. Why? “Just because we love orange marmalade,” shrugged a company spokesman.

Paddington 3 is in cinemas now – and if you don’t watch this one at the cinema, you can expect a hard stare from your cubs. Following the sweet-but-low-stakes early movies set in London, this is the saga’s first full-on action movie, and only the big screen and surround sound can make the fur fly.

At the same time, you can expect all the heart, warmth and kindness that made us fall for this franchise in 2014. “Dougal Wilson is a wonderful director,” Hugh Bonneville said of the smooth transition. “And I can tell he’s going to look after the bear from Darkest Peru.”

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